Well, I'm back from Louisiana. I'm pleased to report that everything went well, the adoption was finalized and everything is completely legal. All we have to do is wait for Louisiana to mail us her amended birth certificate.

Thank you to everyone for all your well wishes.

Now for some more site-specific news (after the break).

First, Project Wonderful has changed the way it serves ads. PW ads are now targeted via geographic location: in other words, advertisers can now buy ads to be shown specifically in the US, in Canada, in Europe, and in every place not covered by the previous three.

I think it's an interesting idea, and the way PW set it up is kind of neat. I support what they're doing but it's going to make ads a little more complicated here on the site. I'm pretty sure there are more than a few people on my site who dislike targeted advertising for security & privacy reasons, but I'm also pretty sure they already use ad blockers in their browsers so it's all a wash on that end. What it means for me, though, is that it's now more difficult for me to monitor all the ads on my site because the default ads I see are the ones serving the US. I try to keep the ads I display "safe" for people who browse the comic from work, and for the record I have actually killed some rather well-paying ads because I thought they crossed into the realm of "this would trigger an uncomfortable conversation if your supervisor happens to be wandering by while you're viewing this site while this ad was displaying."

If you happen to see ads on the site you think might make life difficult for you at work, tell me which region you're viewing from (US, Canada, Europe, and Everywhere Else) and what the ad is and I'll look into it. Keep in mind that not everyone will agree on what is "appropriate material" and that I have in the past and will in the future run ads that make me personally uncomfortable because I feel that in the end they fall within the standards I've set, which translates to "reporting an ad you dislike doesn't guarantee it will get pulled."

Second, I managed to meet my M-F publishing schedule throughout the entire month of January! Long-time readers will know that meeting a consistent publishing schedule is not my strong suit, and that in my nearly 14 years of publishing this comic actually making an entire month's schedule is a remarkable achievement. In fact, matrix452 on Twitter asked

we're hitting >1 month of updates...should i be @ church waiting for the end of the world?

The answer to this is "no, not yet." February is looking to be an extremely hectic month and there's every possibility the streak will end some time in the next 27 days.

Third and Finally, February 5th-7th is the 2010 occurrence of Guilford College Yachting Club's What the Hell?! Con in Greensboro, NC. WTH?!Con is one of the most enjoyable conventions/geekfests I've ever been to. I was invited as a guest this year, but like the two years before I've had to decline because my life is too hectic for me to have fun. But don't let my sorry state of affairs keep you from it -- if you're in the area you should definitely go. You'll get to meet a number of other people in the webcomic world, many of whom I had the pleasure of meeting the last time I was there (specifically Phillip Wright, Matt Wood, Dave Milloway, Stephanie Freese, Kel McDonald, Joe Komenda, Jennie Breeden, Jamie Robertson, Brian Shearer and Marty Blevins). So consider this an enthusiastic endorsement mixed with wistful longing.

That's all for now.